C-318: Indian Residential School Reconciliation and Memorial Day Act

The Indian Residential School and Memorial Day Act is a simple piece of legislation which proposes to set aside June 2 as “Indian Residential School and Memorial Day.”

The Preamble to the Bill explains its purpose is “provide an opportunity to focus on understanding and reconciliation.” The date of June 2nd was chosen to commemorate the release of the final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

This Bill would not create a new national holiday. C-118 was introduced as a Private Members Bill on October 26, 2016 by MP Robert-Falcon Ouellette (Winnipeg Centre), and has passed first reading.

While this bill would be symbolically valuable. Mr. Ouellette said when introducing this Bill,

“I ask Parliament to support this legislation and work together, as a nation and a country, toward the revitalization of indigenous communities and to affirm the treaty relationship between Canadians and indigenous peoples.”